Electric snap switch



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Aug. 28, 1923.

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ROBERT H. IENTLEY, OF HARTFORD, CONNECTICUT, ASSIGNOR T0 THE HART .dt

HEGEll/IAN MANUFACTURING COMPANY, 03E' HARTFORD, CONNEC'JEXCUT, A CURP()- RTION OF CONNECTCUT,

ELECTRC SNAP SWTCH.i

Application filed February 7, 192i. Serial No. 442,922.

To @ZZ whom it' may concern Be it known that Bosnnr H. BENTLEY, a citizen of the United States,- residing at Hartford, in the county of Hartford and State of Connecticut, has invented certain .new and useful improvements in Electric ity when incorporated in an article of the character set forth having a movable and desirably oscillatory or swinging switching member, one of the primary objects ot the invention being the provision of means of an eiective. rcharacter by which necessary sta ting torquef can be given to the switching iis-in. in, the construction shown, the rthing member involves a main portion n ,il :in .auxiliary portion carried thereby. when this construction is present another t l. have in view is to have the main or -52 animating' portion of the switching member riifldr ble. and the head or supplemental pork v v 4f n l ,l non still or relativeti7 so, to thus adapt the .switching member to coact with rigid con which engaged by 'the main or n; vuiting portion when the switch is in the on relation. l

ln the drawings accompanying and forming part of the present specification l ha ve hm-tn in detail a form, one of several, of the invention 'which to enable those skilled in the ari, to practice the 'sameJ will be set forth fiillv in the following description. b- Yiously i .uni not restricted to the disclosure made by said drawings and description. lt may depart therefrom in several respects within the scope of the invention defined by the claims following said description.

Referring to said drawings; y

Figure l is a top plan view of a switch involving the invention. l

2 is a sectional side elevation of the same, the sectional plane cutting the body of the switch and the switching member,

wg'. 3 is detail in cross section of a he base, the switching member Fig. si is a diagrammatic detail.

Like characters refer to like parts throughout the several views..

'lhe operative parts of the switch are supported by a suitable base such as that denoted by 2 and Which generally consists of some insulating composition such as common in switches of this type; The base usually supports a casing which houses the switching mechanism and contacts, but which l have for clearness omitted. lThe operation of the switching mechanism is initiated by an actuator such as that denoted in a general way by 3. This actuator as shown comprises a body as 4C for instance aA strip or yokelike piece of metal onto the ends of which are mounted the composition buttonsv. lThe base also has contacts 6 fastened to the base and to which the wires are connected. As shown the contacts or terminals 6 are stationary and inelastic or rigid and the free end portion of the switching member, hereinafter described, is projected between these contacts when the switching member is in the on7 relation. The active portions of the contacts have forwardly diverging faces 8 along which the free end of the switching member rides in its passage toward the parallel active faces 9 ofthe contacts as shown in Fig. l. 'llhe switching memberis denoted in a general way by l0 and as shown comprises a body or main member 11 and a supplemental member l2 movably supported on the body ormain member l1. The body or main member l1 as shown is pivotally supported at 13 for swinging movement by the base 2, the pivot 13 ,being situated below' the body i of the actuator. This body or main mems ber l1 is of yoke or practically U form and straddle's the body 4 of the actuator, the transverse portion of the yoke being obviously below the body 4 and the branches thereof being .it opposite sides of said body Li. The supplemental member constitutes a head or crown piece therefor and it is practically in the form of a yoke or inverted is shown the side branches of the supplemental member l2 have lateral oiftscts or tongue 16 which` has a slidable connectionw-ith the shank of the swinging or rocking body 17, the foot 18 of which is forked to straddle the cross piece 19 of the body 4 of p is the actuator. The shank of the-rocking or swinginul part 17 is surrounded asshown by a coiled spring 20 the lower end of which engages the foot 18 and the upper end of which engages'the transverse portin of the supplemental part 12'of the switching me1nber, the spring being coiled about the shank .of the part 17 and alsoabout the projection -or tongue 16.

It is proper to note that 'the main or mounting portion 11 of the switching mem-L ber in the construction shown, is desirably of yieldable nature while the supplemental member 12 is not. These two members are of yoke form and the branchesof the yoke of the main o r mounting 'portion enter between the fixed contacts 6, and on the entering motion slightly approach each other S0 as to insure a solid firm contact.

In Fig. 2 the dotted lines show the switch- A ing member 10 as being in the off relation. It will be assumed that it is desired to o btain the closedl circuited relation. In ,this event the following procedure will be adopted. rIhe actuator 3 will be thrust toward the left in Fig. 2 fromv the dotted line position. I might explain that 011 the movementr of the actuator 3, the. supplemental switching portion 12 through the agency of the interposed spring 20 is swung toward the dead center line, the spring at 'thesame time being conditioned to impart a snap -movement, which is eected the instantfthat the supplemental switching portion 12 crosses the dead centerline.v At this point thefconl ditioned spring by reaction, ywill snap lthe primaryv switching portion 12 so that in the event the circuit is open at the institution of the action described, the sides of the 'main switching portion will be caused toy snapped substantially between the parallel faces of the contacts 6. lTheopposite action` of lthe switching member from the full line to the dotted line position is vpractically the 1 'reverse-of that described.

It .will be clear thatowing to the nature of l'the switching member I can when it is at' In the diagram, Fig. 4, Iliave illustrated accuser y lthe action of the movinglp'arts in travelling l This is supf from one extreme to the other. posed to be the motion in travelling from of to on. 'Ihe opposite action or'from off to on would be the reverse of that illustrated. In this view a, and an are afsumed to be the extreme positions of a connection between the' rocking body or spring carrier 17 and the actuator 5, while b represents the pivot Abetween the main switchingl member 11- and the supporting body 2. The line b-c represents the longitudinal central line ofthe main portion 11 of the switching member when in one of its extreme positions. The point represents the pivotal connection between the main switching portion 11 and the' supplemental switching portion 12. The line af-e represents the central line of the supplemental switching portion 12 when thefconnection 19 between the rockingb'ody 17 and the actuator 15 is'atY the point a. It will therefore be clear that the spring 20 when the parts are in this particular position, exerts its thrust in a line between points a and e and thus exerts a greater starting torque on the main switching portion 11 than it would if the thrust of the spring were exerted between the points a and c as wouldbe the case were the supalent not present.` 'I

What I claim is:

plemental switching portion 12 or its equivingQmember having a, main swinging portion and an auxiliary portion mounted-for swingingmovemenfJ on the -main portion, an actuator for the switching member mounted for back and forth movement in a straight line, a body having a flexible connection \both with the actuator and the auxiliary portion ofthe switch, and a Spring around the body and acting against the auxiliary 1. An electric switch comprising a switch- .portion of the switch, the actuator on its movementacting tocondition the spring to snap the switching member. y

` 2. An electricswitch comprisinga switching member having mainand auxiliary portions each in the form of a yoke, the yokes being intertted, the main portion being mounted for swinging movement and the auxiliary portion swinging on the main portion, an actuator for the switchingmember mounted for'back and forth motion and disposed between`the sides of the main portion of the switching inember, a body connected vflexibly with the actuator and connected opiio eratively with the auxiliary portion of the switching member, and a spring around the body to act directly against said switching portion, the actuator on its motion conditioning the springto'impart a snap movement to the. switching member.

3. An electric switch comprising a movably mounted switching member, an actuator for the switching member, spring means between the switching member and the actuator, the actuator being movable to condition the spring means to impart a snapv movement to the switching member, the latter comprising main and auxiliary portions movably connected with each other, the auxiliary portion being stift', an'd contacts between which the main portion is projeetable` said. main portion being yieldable to enter between the contacts.

Witnesses:

MONROE GUEaT, CARL F. HAMMON. 

